Date: Tue, 31 Jul 2007 13:53:55 -0400
To: bzrhoades@...
From: "Teri J. Dluznieski" <piglet@...>
Cc: cwoody@..., deserthealingart@..., megbeeler@..., Wisdom_of_the_Andes-unsubscribe@...



Vote No to expand the NAFTA into Peru and Panama Print Email
Thanks for asking your Congressional representative to vote no on Fast Track Authority.

The good news: Fast Track expired June 30th and has not yet come up for a vote.

The bad news: The debate on Fast Track has shifted to a vote on Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) which will be voted on country by country. The democratic leadership and President Bush are pushing Peru and Panama Free Trade Agreements that would basically extend the rules of NAFTA and CAFTA on to these countries (with Colombia and Korea around the corner). Like the preceding Free Trade Agreements NAFTA and CAFTA before them, these new FTAs follow the same agricultural rules and would effectively cause hardship for millions of small farmers, causing many to lose their livelihoods.

According to Oxfam America:

"A third of Peru's population depends on agriculture to make a living. Just like with the US-Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement (DR-CAFTA), the US-Peru FTA would force Peru to open its market to subsidized agricultural imports. Each year, the US government pays billions of dollars in subsidies. This encourages industrial-sized farms to overproduce and dump surpluses, which depresses local prices. Peruvian farmers, who grow crops that are vital to the domestic economy, such as wheat, corn, rice, and cotton, simply can't compete. The US-Peru FTA would push poor farmers deeper into poverty."

Our Peruvian trading partners are very concerned with the impact the proposed US-Peru Free Trade Agreements would have on their members and small-scale farmers throughout the country. They are asking us to do what we can to let consumers know that Congress will be voting on this during the next few months.

Please call your Congressional representative today and tell them you oppose all attempts to expand the NAFTA experience into Peru and Panama or click this link to Public Citizen's website to send a letter to congress. Unfortunately, under the Free Trade rules, Congress is not allowed to negotiate the Free Trade Agreements (in other words, there is no way to suggest improvements or changes). Congress will only be able to vote these agreements up or down in their entirety. Please urge them to vote NO.

For more information on the specifics of the U.S. – Peru FTA, go to Oxfam's website.